President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris signed the Democrats' Inflation Reduction Act and Chips and Science Act in 2022, promising to lower inflation and make life more affordable for Americans. However, the reality has been quite the opposite, as the federal government embarked on a spending spree of taxpayers' dollars. Even VP Harris recently admitted on the camping trail that a cost of living crisis persists.
Two years after Biden-Harris' Inflation Reduction Act and Chips and Science began offering some of the $400 billion in tax credits, loans, and grants to promote the development and promotion of clean energy across the country while expanding the semiconductor supply chain, a number of projects have been delayed or paused.
A newly published investigation by the Financial Times reveals that nearly 40% of Biden's key industrial and climate projects (each valued over $100 million) have been delayed or put on hold. FT said that's about $84 billion worth of projects sitting idle. It added the total value of projects tracked by its investigative team was approximately $228 billion.
The delays raise significant questions about big government's ability to effectively manage the industrial transformation across the US to rebuild the Heartland's industrial capacity.
Here's a map of the delayed or paused manufacturing projects.
The uninspiring success rate of these projects, with many not on track as they should be, is a national management issue that extends all the way to the top. In the private sector, such dismal performance would not be tolerated.
Considering the US is in a race to expand its manufacturing base and reduce reliance on China as global conflict threats continue to surge - the dismal success rate so far needs to be reviewed by lawmakers on Capitol Hill to understand if the most qualified folks are managing the projects.
